Using Old Coffee Grounds in the Garden

If you come to my house, one of the things you will always find is coffee in my coffee pot. I am truly a coffee addict. I drink it all day long and never start a day without it. My love of coffee has however left me with a surplus of leftover coffee grounds. As I was dumping yesterday’s coffee grounds into the compost bin last night, it occurred to me that maybe it was time for a post on all the awesome ways to use your coffee grounds in the garden. Without further adieu…

1. Put coffee grounds in your compost bin:

Coffee grounds are a wonderful thing to add to your compost as they are high in nitrogen and will make great compost for nitrogen loving seedlings like tomatoes. Coffee grounds have a ratio of 20:1 nitrogen to carbon which is great for compost. The only thing you want to consider if you add a lot of coffee grounds to your compost is that for approximately every 11 lbs of coffee grounds you add you want to add about 2 tsp. of lime. This will make sure that things are well balanced. If you don’t already have a compost bin, check out how you can simply make your own compost bin from an old Rubbermaid container.

2. Spread coffee grounds around plants:

Some plants will love it if you spread the coffee grounds on the ground around the plant. Spread them approximately as far out as the branches reach. Plants like hydrangea, tomatoes, blueberries, cranberries, citrus fruit, camellias, gardenias, rhododendrons, and vireyas all love a ph of between 3.0 and 5.0 and coffee grounds will help to achieve this.

3. Make your hydrangea blooms blue:

Did you know that you can alter the color of your hydrangea blooms by controlling the ph of the soil. Blue hydrangea can be achieved through lowering the ph of the soil. Coffee grounds are a great way to achieve this. On the other hand, if you prefer pink hydrangea you can add lime to the soil to help encourage the blooms to be pink. For more information about hydrangea check out think article.

4. Using coffee grounds as mulch:

If you have access to a lot of coffee grounds (like if you live next door to a coffee shop), you can use the coffee grounds as mulch for your garden. Just remember to add about 2 tsp. of lime for every 11 lbs of coffee grounds. Also, don’t spread it on too thick as it will mold if it is too thick. No more than 1/2″ is perfect. On a side note, I have heard a rumor that Starbucks gives their used coffee grounds away for free for gardeners!

5. Make a liquid garden feed:

If you would like to make a wonderful liquid feed for your garden, place left offer coffee grounds in a bucket and fill with water. Let the bucket sit for a day or 2 until it turns a nice rich brown color. Then use the liquid to feed your garden. My tomatoes go wild when I do this. They LOVE it.

6. Coffee grounds will deter some garden pests:

Did you know that garden slugs hate coffee. Maybe that’s why they move so slow LOL. Anyways, if you sprinkle coffee grounds around your garden it will help deter slugs and snails from inhabiting your garden. You can even use the grounds to make a sort of barrier around the garden.

7. Worms love coffee grounds:

If you are luck enough to have a worm bin :0 then you can add some coffee grounds to your worm bin. About a cup a week is good for most small worm bins. Maybe this is why I have so many earthworms in my garden.

8. Coffee grounds may fight some garden mold and fungus:

Some research suggests that coffee grounds might help fight off some common garden fungus and mold such as Fusarium, Pythium, and Sclerotinia species. This may be a great organic way to keep common garden mold and fungus in check.

I am hoping this article inspires at least one person to save their coffee grounds and reuse them in the garden. I am sure there are many other uses for coffee grounds both in the garden and around the house. Do you know one that I have not listed? I would love to hear from you. I hope this article was helpful. Happy gardening!